Praying, Running and Giving

I decided to run my first half marathon on October 16, 2011, at the Nike Women's Marathon in San Francisco. I've dedicated my body to working towards my personal goal of completing a half marathon and I am raising funds to help find cures and better treatments for leukemia, lymphoma, Hodgkin’s disease and myeloma.

When I first signed up in May, it was through a series of divine events. I did not know of anyone personally who struggled with leukemia or lymphoma. I prayed and felt that I was supposed to move forward with joining the team and running the race. I'm not a natural runner but I know that if God is with me then what could ever stand against?

In July, a family member was diagnosed with lymphoma. I knew then that God had a plan all the while for me to run this race and that He was in control. It's with God's strength and for His glory that I run.

If you feel led, you can make a tax deductible donation on my website at : http://pages.teamintraining.org/ntxok/nikesf11/jweissh8fp

A Marathon Miracle-Learning to Endure

Do some prayers for miracles seem like they take a "marathon" amount of time to be answered? He's been teaching me about the miracle of a marathon. Think about it. A human being running 26.2 miles. In your mind, picture a city about 30 miles away and imagine running that entire distance on two legs with an engine, your heart, being the size of a fist that weighs in at less than a pound. We are truly beautifully and wonderfully made by Him. Amazing! What a miracle you are!

Most people can't walk out the door and complete a feat like running a marathon or even a half marathon. I'm learning as I train that there is a tremendous amount of blood, sweat and tears involved. I have had to endure. Most of my days are spent struggling through training but 90% of my struggle is showing up i.e. getting my butt out of bed. I'm still waiting for that runner's high that I haven't found. Each day I continue to keep my eye on the final goal and each day I do battle to accomplish the goal set before me. My body often aches and my knees hurt. I remind myself that in my weakness, He is strong. Sometimes I feel on top of the mountain and other times I feel as if I am crawling, literally, up a steep hill. I train, train, train and then I train some more. The more I run, the less I think about the pain and the more I think about the beauty of the outcome. Some trainings are mountain top experiences but most are not. It's a matter of putting one foot in front of the other, a monotonous grind, and continuing to press on into the unknown. Sounds like fun, huh? Sounds like life.

Sometimes we get the instant miracles or "rescuing" that we are requesting BUT, and I don't like it either, sometimes God says "Wait. Trust Me. I've got this." In a land where everything has a "now" availability, we simply don't know how to wait and not feel forsaken. Don't discount the "gift" of endurance that He wants to give you because, as I'm learning, you can smile and you can have joy. It IS a choice though.

Romans 5:3-5a More than that, we rejoice in our sufferings, knowing that suffering produces endurance, and endurance produces character, and character produces hope, And hope does not disappoint us, because God has poured out his love into our hearts by the Holy Spirit...

So, when your debts are overwhelming, when your child walks away from the faith, when your marriage is struggling and you've done all 'you' can do to make things better or the adoption falls through....Even when you feel like there is no hope, you can continue to wait and trust in His goodness. 1 Peter 5:7 Cast all your anxiety on him because he cares for you. Some days, you tell God you can't do it anymore. Don't give up or give in. Take the next step right in front of you. Then, you will see a tiny little ray of sunshine break through to a blazing sunrise full of His glory. As in the marathon, you continue to endure and when the final race day comes, you will cross the finish line Victorious. A marathon miracle but a miracle no less!

Here's a link to a song that I have been meditating on during this 'marathon' season called Sweetly Broken by Jeremy Riddle: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pBTIllv2j_I

Check out my page on a small part of the story behind the run: http://pages.teamintraining.org/ntxok/nikesf11/jweissh8fp

BE-YOU-TIFUL

BE-YOU-TIFUL

Thank God for forgiveness and grace but I made an ass out of myself today at boot camp. GASP! Most of you that know me won’t be surprised by this regular occurrence. I feel comfortable using this phrase since I’m referring to myself and it is in the bible (scripture reference Numbers 22:28 And the LORD opened the mouth of the ass, and she said unto Balaam, What have I done unto thee, that thou hast smitten me these three times?) AND I like to uncover religious spirits-including my own :)



Let me start by saying boot camp activities are timed and recorded. As we progress, our times should ideally improve each session. Okay, I usually come in near last on these drills. Today, I had an opportunity to come in second. I was about 100 yards from the finish line and I saw a co-camper about 25 yards in front of me. It really isn’t a race but I couldn’t help myself. I thought, “I can do this. Last place? Not this time, Jennifer.” So I gave my final kick (that what runner’s call it when you are on the home stretch and you give it all you have or so I hear.) Well, she heard me coming behind her. How could she not? I was a huffin’ and puffin’, my feet pounding like a band of wild horses on her tail. She started to pick up the pace…..and I responded in kind. I was not only giving it all I had, I went into a primal warrior mode. It was like those National Geographic specials where the wild wildebeests that are slow get taken down by the pride of lions and eaten alive. Well, this girl was not getting taken down alive today.



As a good Christian woman I thought you were to be meek and mild. You know-let others go first, take the last seat, be demure, not exerting any sense of strength or power but today something within me snapped. I wanted to overcome. I wanted to conquer. I was not going to be stopped. Win or lose….it was on. I read this today, “Running is arguably the most individual sport there is. The mind is the motor that fuels the desire to continue and convince the body there is more to give. Teammates are more on the periphery.” It wasn’t about beating my sweet sister. I love soccer because it is a team sport and I’m all about the “T-E-A-M.” This was about breaking down a mental barrier of what the enemy had convinced me was a vice as a Godly woman. To be victorious! To conquer! To overcome! To exert power and strength-to run free and abandoned without fear of being too much. 1 Corinthians 9:26-27a “Therefore I run thus: not with uncertainty. Thus I fight: not as one who beats the air. 27 But I discipline my body and bring it into subjection…”


I am currently training to run a half marathon in San Francisco in October. It's important that I don't get all the way to San Francisco and realize that I haven't trained myself both physically AND mentally. Isn't life like a marathon? Our path is filled with hills and valleys. There are times we want to give up but we keep going and we learn to endure to the end no matter what we "feel." 2 Timothy 4:7 "I have fought the good fight, I have finished the race, I have kept the faith."


Thankfully, my sweet fellow camper was not offended by my sudden need to display strength. She said, “ I really appreciate you doing that. It makes me better.” Isn’t that awesome? We came in together-spurring each other on to greatness. I felt like God was cheering his girls on from the sidelines like a proud Father.

I understand there are a lot of people out of balance the other way-they have to win but this is my story of learning how to be who God created me to be. I pray that through this you feel freedom to be who He created YOU to BE which is BE-YOU-TIFUL. Not to be like someone else but to be unique, strong, resilient, determined and to finish the race strong!Don’t lay down. Rise up mighty warrior. You do have what it takes. Jesus has given you every thing you need for the victory! Romans 8:37 Yet in all these things we are more than conquerors through Him who loved us.





quote from "Runner-Cross Country and Track," by Kevin Lonnquist, Trophy Club Times, 29 June, 2011, sec. B pg 3.